Guest Feature: My smart phone is smarter than me

By Matt Bowman

Smart phones. They’re epic. These devices have been paramount in the way we operate our lives. Though some users cannot function with them, others literally cannot function without them.

My prediction is that smart phones will only continue to grow among cell-phone users, and ultimately, non-smart phones will become obsolete.

Perhaps you’re among the millions of Americans who — with less than a week to Christmas — is still in search of the “perfect gift.” Maybe you’re even among those considering a smart phone for you or your loved one. If so, my experiences with various handheld devices might be of some interest to you.

Personally, I love the smart phone because it has enabled me to remain connected to friends, family, life and work via handheld. For that reason, I believe the idea of the smart phone is brilliant. The conundrum I have faced, however, is finding a smart phone that fits my personality and lifestyle to make me more functional in life.

I was the proud owner of the infamous iPhone, which has revolutionized the smart phone industry. However, because of network problems with AT&T, I was forced to switch back to Verizon. This has made me somewhat of a phone critic over the past year because I’ve been in constant search of a phone comparable to the iPhone. This year, besides the Apple iPhone, I have used Samsung Omnia, Blackberry Storm, Curve and Tour, and the Motorola Droid.

One thing that came from this experience was a decision to avoid using Windows-based phones. They are very complex and have operating systems that are frustrating to operate.

The Blackberry devices I have used are pretty good versions of what they are. I say that because the Blackberry topic can be somewhat controversial to criticize. Blackberry loyalists are completely sold on the benefits of their devices — and I commend them for this because the whole idea is to find a device that makes sense for your life. For me, though, Blackberry devices are wildly dull and seem to have many glitches with the operating system, e-mail system and Internet cohesion. Personally, I have found their operating systems to be much slower than most smart phones, often taking a lot of time to start, browse the Internet and multi-task.

I have been very pleased with the new Motorola Droid, which is my current device. The specs are the best I have seen in the smart phone market. The Droid is very user friendly and uses an android 2.0 operating system that has been effortless for me to grasp. For the Droid, Motorola has partnered with Google and Verizon to create a device that is technologically robust and supported by the best network for service.

In fact, I have so much satisfaction with my smart phone that I’ve realized it may be smarter than me!

· My phone always knows my latitude and longitude. This is comforting because I normally don’t!

· By simply signing into my g-mail account and Facebook accounts, my contacts automatically appeared in my phone book — with their Facebook profile pictures synced to my contact list. WOW!

· With a touch of a button, I can command my phone to text, direct and call anyone in my phone book. Although I am able to locate the nearest Starbucks myself, I do not have their address, phone number memorized. Droid does.

· I have the Bible loaded on my phone to read whenever I need encouragement or to share a verse. Since I always have my phone with me, now I have my Bible too, which is awesome!

· Taking pictures, listening to music, watching a movie, GPS, alarm clock, high speed Internet are all features on Droid!

Moving forward, I only anticipate this industry to remain on this trajectory of change as time and technology inevitably change. Sometimes I wish it would all slow down and let me enjoy a phone before the next one comes out!

For now, though, I am happy that my current phone is smarter than me. It simplifies my daily activities, thereby allowing me to focus on the more important things in life.

Matt Bowman is a 2008 graduate of Olivet Nazarene University where he currently works as an Admission Counselor. He blogs regularly at mattybumpbo.blogspot.com.